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Successful grant writing

How to get published

Getting it right

What distinguishes a good manuscript from a bad one?

Critical stages of grant applications...

Top tips and tricks

and what to consider along the way

Time keeping: Be realistic about the time it

takes to write the grant - grants are like an ideal
gas, they fill all the space available to them.

Generate an idea
Why is this interesting and
d who cares?
s
Who will benefit if the workk is successful?
thi idea?
How novel iss this
he best person
p
Why am I the
to do this?
ly achieve
ac eve what I claim?
cla
Can I realistically

Find a matching funding

unding opportunity
Look at who funds
f ds similar
sim
research
are: different
dif ent agencies support
upport different types
typ of projects
Be aware:
le calls
ca
Scan for available
st a wider
w
Be willing to cast
net
p your mind open
op
Think outside off the box. Keep

Background
round re
research
arch
Understand the different
ifferent agencies and their styles
m Manager they are used to cold calls!
Talk to the Program
ure search,
se ch, it can save you weeks of writing!
Do the literature
m
ers know nothing about your work, but
Assume thee panel members
abou your competitors.
etitors.
everything about
embe to be experts in your field, put your
Dont expect the panel members
idea into context.

Write the technical portion

on
What problem are you addressing?
Why hasn't it been solved yet?
hypothesis?
Why do you think you will succeed? What is your hypothesis?
estones?
What is your work plan and what are your milestones?
How will you measure success?

Check your style: Do not use tiny fonts, even if

the call doesn't have a lower limit.
11 point is probably as low as you can go.
Leave ample margins (3/4 in is pushing it).
Avoid passive voice and tell a story.
Know your audience: Find out more about your
funding agency and use it to your advantage
e.g. emphasize basic science for NSF, healthcare
for NIH or technology for DARPA etc.
Connect and network: Grant calls include the
contact information for a reason. Call the
Program Manager as they seldom can answer all
their emails. Prepare all your questions in
advance.
Recycle but be warned: If you reuse parts of
older grants (everybody does it) watch for the
items specific to older grants in those texts nothing reveals a quick hack job better.

...is in scope
Investigate all candidate journals and find out about the:
Aims and scope
Accepted types of articles
Readership
Current hot topics by going through the
abstracts of recent publications

...adheres to publication ethics

Avoid plagiarism of others work
Avoid multiple publication of the same work, never submit
your manuscript to more than one journal at a time
Cite and acknowledge others work appropriately
Only list co-authors who made major contributions

You can find the Guide for Authors on the journals homepage on
elsevier.com.

Be original! Try to be original and propose ideas

that make sense, not just the boilerplate.
Reviewers have read the boilerplate many
times before. But dont forget to explain things
that look unusual.

Time and effort for a typical grant

Administrative
parts

10%

Writing
the technical
narrative

35%

Sue Hanauer (1968)

en
nough to make
Captions and legends must be detailedd enough
figures and tables self explanatory
or other
otherr
No duplication of results described in textt or
illustrations

Use proper manuscript language

Ask a native speaker or use a language editing service to

improve your paper before you submit it.
Poor English makes it difficult for the editor and reviewers
to understand your work and might lead to rejection of your
paper.
Be alert to common errors:
Sentence construction
Incorrect tenses
Inaccurate grammar
Mixing languages
English language should be used throughout the manuscript,
including figures, charts, graphs and photos.

Roughly 35% of all submitted manuscripts are rejected before peer

review. Make sure you revise before you submit.
Looking for a
funding call

Article structure

Do your findings advance understanding in a

specific research field?
Is your work of interest to the journals audience?
Is your manuscript structured properly?
Are your conclusions justified by your results?
Are your references international/accessible enough?
Did you format your figures and tables properly?
Did you correct all grammatical and spelling mistakes?

25%
Title
Abstract
Keywords
Planning
the proposal

25%

And remember
Always assume any problems were your
fault, not the reviewer.
If the reviewer has misunderstood
something, then you did not explain it
clearly enough.
Make sure you invest considerable work
and effort in any revision reviewers will
likely do the same.
and finally good luck!

(IMRAD)
Introduction
Methods
Results
And
Discussions

Make your article as

concise as possible

Conclusions
Acknowledgements
References
Supplementary data

Content produced by: Aleksandr Noy, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Member of Editorial Advisory Panel, Materials Today & Natasha Noy from Stanford University, USA. In association with Elsevier & Materials Today

publishingcampus.com

One picture is worth a thousand words.

Are you ready to submit?

Submission

5%

Illustrations are critical, because...

nt way to present
presen
nt
Figures and tables are the most efficient
results
blication
Results are the driving force of the publication

Publishers do not correct language, this is the authors responsibility

Stick to the Guide for Authors in your manuscript, editors do

not like wasting time on poorly prepared manuscripts.

Submit and forget about it

Allow enough time to upload the files and check pdfs for readability
and errors.
Many agencies systems get very busy during submission times accept
and prepare for this.
Once submitted, forget about the proposal until you hear from the
review panel.
Make sure that the agency communications dont get filtered into your
spam folder.
Many agencies will return detailed reviews. Use the review to revise and
resubmit your grant.

Illustrations

...follows the Guide for Authors

Size matters: When it comes to budget be

frugal but realistic. The average size of the
award specified in the call is a good indication
of the scope of work the Program Manager
has in mind.

Check the administrative parts

Read the call again and again and again
Calls are usually specific about the formats they require
Terms like required and must include should be adhered to
Work on your budgets and other documents in advance be prepared
If you need external letters, give people enough time to get them to
you

A good manuscript...

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Make sure you are equipped!

Discover our free online courses and seminars at

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